2. Pete Carroll, Las Vegas Raiders
When you hear people talk about Pete Carroll, you hear things like, "He's the youngest 73-year-old you'll ever meet." And those types of statements are just weird. But Carroll certainly takes care of himself and doesn't strike as the type of guy who is entering his mid-70s. He's still got what it takes to coach at the highest level and now he's joining the absolute Mount Rushmore of coaches that is the AFC West.
Carroll is now the fourth head coach in the AFC West with a top-50 all-time winning percentage. Top-50 all-time...
Carroll is likely going to bring Russell Wilson with him in Las Vegas and while I don't know if he has a shot to truly take the AFC West immediately, I love this hire for the Raiders overall and especially when you pair Carroll with general manager John Spytek, who has done incredible work with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Denver Broncos.
1. Mike Vrabel, New England Patriots
I don't know why more people aren't loving this move. I guess from the perspective of firing Jerod Mayo, I get it. The Patriots may have done Mayo dirty in this situation. But independent of that, hiring Mike Vrabel is an objectively great move and the Patriots may have the best overall situation of any of the teams needing a head coach in 2025.
Drake Maye looks like a stud. The Pats have a ton of cap space. Vrabel was recently a Coach of the Year in the NFL. The only reason things didn't work out in Tennessee with Vrabel is because that organization is largely incompetent and Vrabel had a horrible GM with him when Jon Robinson was assembling the roster. We saw things really start to deteriorate when Robinson shockingly traded AJ Brown to the Eagles for Treylon Burks (basically).
That was not something Vrabel signed off on.
He routinely outkicked his coverage with the Titans. His teams have always been tough. And he assembles a good staff. The Patriots might surprise some folks in 2025.